After 5 days in Queensland, Australia, we spent a few days in New South Wales, which is the region where Sydney is located on the southeast corner of the Australian continent.
Our experiences in Australia have been quite pleasant, as there is much to see and do and the culture is pretty laid back and relaxed (think of the sea turtles in Finding Nemo)! =)
We also met numerous people who are spending weeks, months, and even years, traveling around Australia from all over the world! All over the world, though, usually excludes Americans, who seem to live to work… it’s pretty sad, isn’t it?
Overall, from our few days in the country, it seems like Australia wouldn’t be a bad place to live. I definitely want to come back to see what else Australia has to offer! (Hopefully, the U.S. dollar will be stronger next time though… because everything seems pretty pricey for us bringing U.S. dollars!!)
Day 12
After another bright and early flight that departed at 5:45AM from Cairns to Sydney, we arrived in the city known for its famous Opera House and Harbour Bridge.
When we arrived in Sydney, we were greeted by the cold and wet winter weather and quickly headed to our hostel by taking the AirportLink train to Central Station.
After resting a short while in the hostel and waiting for the weather to improve a bit, we ventured out to explore Sydney’s CBD and plan our time in Sydney. As we were trying to confirm our tour to the Blue Mountains for Day 13, we discovered that the tour was NOT running and that we would have to make alternate arrangements. So, it was time to rent another right-side drive on-the-left-side-of-the-road car to explore the Blue Mountains on our own!
For the rest of the first dreary day in Sydney, we wandered over to Darling Harbour, spent some time indoors at the Sydney Aquarium (where we saw many of the same creatures we had seen in their natural environment on the Great Barrier Reef), made plans for the Blue Mountains and finally returned back to our hostel to get some rest after finding some food.
A dreary day in Darling Harbour
Day 13
After the rainy and windy first day in Sydney, the weather improved so that our trip to the Blue Mountains turned out to be pretty nice!
As we ventured west from Sydney towards the Blue Mountains, we took a quick detour to visit Featherdale Wildlife Park where we were able to interact with many of Australia’s native animals including koalas, wallabies and kangaroos! =)
Hi, I’m a Wallaby!
Koalas like leaves
Kangaroo Face-off
“Watcha lookin’ at?”
Following our animal adventures, we continued out to the Blue Mountains where we were able to take in the amazing views of the vast mountains and valleys.
We spent several hours trekking around nature and absorbing the sights and smells of the forest.
At the Leura Cascades, we tried to find Gordon Falls but ended up at the scenic Bridal Veil Lookout and another majestic scenic lookout.
Bridal Veil View
View of the Jamison Valley
Next, we headed up to Echo Point where we saw the famous Three Sisters at Katoomba and spent some time to climb down to one of the towers.
The Three Sisters overlooking the Jamison Valley
Close-up of the Three Sisters
Standing along the side of one of the Sisters
From there, we headed over to “Scenic World” where we took the steepest railway down to see some historic mining exhibits. We also were able to get spectacular views of both Katoomba Falls and the Three Sisters while elevated 270 meters above the air on the glass-bottom Scenic Skyway.
Scenic Skyway
Katoomba Falls from the Scenic Skyway
Upon our return to Sydney in the evening, we drove around looking for a good place to get evening photos of the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge which took us to Kiribilli and several other locations on the north side of Sydney and finally to Mrs Macquaries Point. =)
Day 14
The highlight of Day 14 was visiting the Sydney Opera House up close and personal and experiencing the dramatic symphony of Romeo and Juliet in the main concert hall.
Textured surface of the Opera House
Design of the Opera House
Performance of the dramatic symphony “Romeo & Juliet” in the main concert hall
Afterwards, we wandered around the Domain and returned to Mrs Macquaries Point to watch the sunset behind the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.
Day 15 – Part I
After packing our belongings, we joined the Sunday service at Hillsong Church where we encountered firsthand the praise songs that have become an integral part of contemporary worship services. What an amazing way to start off the third week of this trip!
And so, our Australian adventure concluded as we returned to the Sydney airport via Central Station to fly out to our 4th stop… Singapore.